Bahama Times

Friday, Mar 29, 2024

UK PM Johnson “apologises” to parliament over lockdown breaches but not for lying to them

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologised to parliament on Tuesday after he was fined by police for breaking lockdown laws, saying “he did not know” a birthday gathering at the height of the pandemic was in breach of the rules he had set. He did not apologize for lying to the parliament members.

Opposition lawmakers argue that the prime minister must go, saying he set stringent rules during COVID-19, broke those rules in Downing Street and then repeatedly lied to parliament when he said all guidelines had been met.

Johnson told the House of Commons he had not deliberately mislead parliament but said it had never occurred to him that he was in breach of the rules. He acknowledged that the public had a right to expect better.

His apology came as the Speaker of the House said a vote could be held on Thursday into whether Johnson should be investigated over claims he misled parliament.

Under the ministerial code, knowingly misleading parliament is an offence that should result in resignation.

"As soon as I received the notice (from the police), I acknowledged the hurt and the anger, and I said that people had a right to expect better of their prime minister," Johnson told parliament.

Labour leader Keir Starmer accused Johnson of failing to respect the sacrifices made by the British public during lockdowns, and of demeaning his office.

Urging him to resign, he said the prime minister had the chance to: "bring decency, honesty and integrity back into our politics and stop the denigration of everything that this country stands for".

Johnson told parliament in December that "all guidance was followed completely" over the lockdown restrictions. He was fined by the police last week after an internal inquiry found Downing Street held alcohol-fuelled parties at a time when people were not allowed to attend funerals or visit the sick.

Initial reports of the parties caused a furore in Britain, but pressure from Johnson's own lawmakers has abated since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in which he has sought to play a leading role in the West's response. While a handful have repeated calls for him to go, most say now is not the time.

However Mark Harper, a former Conservative chief whip who once helped maintain party discipline, used the occasion to tell Johnson in the chamber that he needed to quit, saying he did not believe "he is worthy of the great office that he holds".

FULL INQUIRY


Lawmakers will now vote on Thursday on whether Johnson should be referred to parliament's privileges committee for an inquiry.

However, the motion is unlikely to pass because Johnson retains the support of most lawmakers in his Conservative Party and can still command a majority in parliament.

In his first statement to parliament since being handed the fine, Johnson attempted to deflect some of the criticism by talking about other issues he is dealing with, including the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis and immigration.

But the police have investigated 12 gatherings in Downing Street and the prime minister could yet be fined again.

The pressure will also build, with other Conservative lawmakers expected to take the party's performance in local elections on May 5 into account, along with voter perceptions of the prime minister.

A poll by J L Partners for The Times newspaper, which asked almost 2,000 people to give their view of the prime minister in a few words, found comments from 72% of respondents were negative, compared with 16% that were positive. The most common word used was "liar", it reported. "Buffoon" featured highly.

John Whittingdale, a former Conservative minister, said that while many of his constituents were angry, now was not the time to replace the prime minister because of the war in Ukraine.

"We currently face the gravest crisis in our global security for a long time and it is essential that we remain focused on beating Putin and stopping the aggression against Ukraine," he said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Bahama Times
0:00
0:00
Close
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Italian Court's Controversial Ruling on Sexual Harassment Ignites Uproar
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
BBC Personalities Rebuke Accusations Amidst Scandal Involving Teen Exploitation
A Swift Disappointment: Why Is Taylor Swift Bypassing Canada on Her Global Tour?
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
Unilever Plummets in a $2.5 Billion Free Fall, to begin with: A Reckoning for Misuse of Corporate Power Against National Interest
Beyond the Blame Game: The Need for Nuanced Perspectives on America's Complex Reality
Twitter Targets Meta: A Tangle of Trade Secrets and Copycat Culture
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
×